There's a Vampire in My Basement
by StalkeeBrew22
Summary: What really should've happened when Sookie was forced to choose between Bill and Eric. My version of the end of season 4 and into season 5. Read & review please! WARNING: Rated M for graphic language, violence, and sexual situations throughout.
1. Chapter 1

**_Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from True Blood. If I did, would I be writing fanfiction about them? The following italicized excerpt is from season 4, episode 12 of True Blood, but the rest of this story is all my own work unless otherwise noted._  
**

_Sookie turned away from Bill and walked over to Eric. He gazed down at her, trying not to look too hopeful. _

_"If I'm really honest, it wasn't just goofy, innocent Eric I fell for. As vicious and untrustworthy as you can be, there's a goodness in you that breaks my heart. There's a part of me that's always wanted you." Eric looked into her eyes earnestly. _

_"You won't be sorry," he promised. _

"I know," Sookie replied softly. She turned back to Bill, tears in her eyes. "Bill, I said I forgave you, but— but I have to choose Eric."

"I…see," Bill choked out. There was a moment of silence as Bill tried to compose himself and for once, Eric did not goad him. "Yes. Well." He held Sookie gently by the shoulders and kissed her forehead. "Then I must respect your decision. I trust that Eric will love and protect you as I would have." Sookie nodded mutely, trying not to let the tears fall but Bill was glaring over her shoulder at Eric.

"Of course," said Eric gravely, although he could barely contain his excitement. Reluctantly Bill released Sookie and stepped back. She sniffled and gave Eric a little smile. He folded her into his arms. "I meant what I said," he whispered into her hair. He wondered if Bill would leave soon and if Sookie would mind making love in Bill's house. Probably. Sookie was human after all, and still believed in etiquette. Eric was pretty sure that having sex on your ex's furniture— even after receiving his blessing to be together— would not be acceptable to her.

Bill cleared his throat. "Eric."

"Yes?" Eric asked absently, his eyes— and hands— still on Sookie.

"Eric," Bill said, more firmly this time. Sookie turned to Bill hoping Eric would follow suit. "Yes?" Eric repeated, letting Sookie go at last.

"There are…matters to which we must attend," said Bill cryptically. But Eric understood exactly what he meant.

"Of course, "and the two vampires exchanged knowing glances. "Sookie…" Eric began.

"No, no, it's okay," Sookie said quickly. She was tired yet relieved, but flustered by this turn of events and not at all anxious to get involved in any more supernatural politics. "I get it. Super secret vamp stuff. I'll just go on home. Believe me, it's been a crazy enough night; I could use the peace and quiet." She looked to Bill, then Eric. "Well…I'll see you later, then," she ended awkwardly.

"You will," he responded with a shadow of a smile. Sookie gathered her purse and keys, made a beeline for the door then paused as she grabbed the handle. She turned with her hand still on it and looked straight at Bill. "Thank you."

Bill gave her a curt nod, and Sookie closed the door.

Nan Flannigan was furious. Not only had she been fired for letting the Tolerance Fair get "out of hand" but now she had to go crawling to King Bill in Bon Temps— tiny, country, backwater Bon Temps of all places? Why couldn't he at least establish his headquarters someplace with some semblance of civilization, like New Orleans perhaps? Now there was a city for a vampire! She shook her head. No matter where Bill lived, she'd still have to suck up. She would have to admit that he had been right about the witch. That had been a surprise. Apparently they'd have to watch out for a real necromancer every few hundred years. She stood in front of the doors to the Compton mansion, hearing low voices coming from inside. Something vaguely close to nervousness pricked at her for a second then was gone as she pushed open the door and walked into the foyer.

Both Eric and Bill abruptly stopped speaking and at the intrusion and leaped toward her, fangs extended.

"You!" cried Bill, retracting his fangs.

"You," Nan said coolly to Eric, ignoring Bill. "Aren't you supposed to have met your _maker_ by now, Sheriff?" The barb was not lost on Eric and he softly hissed at her, fangs still out.

"Oh, calm down, Northman; I'm not here to pick a fight. I couldn't care less whether you're dead or alive." Eric emitted a low growl but retracted his fangs as Bill closed the front door. "So I take it you were able to get the witch to cooperate, then?" Nan continued. The two men exchanged stares. Nan thought their expressions reminded her of how she remembered children looking like with their hands stuck in the cookie jar.

Bill forced a calm expression onto his face. "Ms. Flannigan," Bill said, holding out his arm towards his office. As she walked past him, he gave Eric a very pointed look, a look that said: let me do the talking. Eric shrugged.

"So you finally caught her. And how did you get the necromancer to reverse the spell?" Nan asked smoothly. Since the other two obviously didn't yet know about her…_diminished_ status, she decided to make them believe they were in trouble with the Authority for as long as she could. Nan enjoyed power and the intimidation she could inflict in others, both vampire and human. Why not wait to tell them the truth a little longer?

"Well, we didn't exactly catch her. We had to— to amend our original plan of action." Bill shrugged nervously. "It's a very long story."

Nan carefully crossed her legs at the ankles only and folded her hands in her lap, smirking. "Then it's a good thing all three of us have nothing but time.

Sookie closed her front door behind her then slumped against it, sighing. It had been much too long of a day. First, getting roped into a surprise shift at Merlotte's (although she was glad to have her job back— don't look a gift horse in the mouth, Gran would say), then watching the two men she loved almost burn to a crisp, and finally deciding Eric was who she wanted to be with. Eric. Sookie smiled, despite her weariness. She wondered how on earth she would explain this to Tara, and decided she'd tackle that when it happened. Given how traumatic the whole Marnie ordeal had been for Lafayette, Tara chose to spend the night with him at his place. _Poor Lafayette_, Sookie thought. It was horrible for him to lose Jesus so suddenly, and after all they'd been through together. But she knew that could never happen to her and her proud viking. Eric was a survivor, no matter what the cost.

It was much too quiet with Eric no longer in the house, come to think of it. Sookie thought about going to bed, but felt wide awake. Thanks to working at a bar and hanging around with vamps, Sookie usually stayed up until dawn or nearabouts and slept past noon. She found it difficult to will herself to go to sleep in the middle of the night. _Like normal people_, she thought ruefully. She figured she'd catch some lame movie on TV with some hot cocoa while she waited for Eric to finish his talk with Bill. As she stepped into the kitchen, she glanced at the clock. 1:32, it read. Sookie yawned halfheartedly and bustled around the kitchen, hunting for cocoa and spoons and the other necessary accoutrements for hot chocolate. She liked to make it from real cocoa powder the way Gran had taught her, not from the store-bought packets.

A loud creaking noise startled her and she spun around quickly from the refrigerator, milk in hand.

"Debbie!" Sookie almost shouted. She smiled brightly— too brightly, the way she always did when she was nervous. "What are you doing here?"

"Hi, Sookie," Debbie Pelt said evenly. "I'm here to tell you how upset I am. Did you know Alcide abjured me?" Debbie held a shotgun in her right hand, although it wasn't raised. Sookie eyed Debbie carefully. She looked like she hadn't slept; her clothes were very wrinkled, her blonde hair was practically a bird's nest, and her mascara and lipstick were smeared all over her face like a grotesque clown.

Sookie slowly put the milk down and took a step sideways, further away from Debbie. "Well…I'm, I'm real sorry to hear that. I'm sure he didn't mean it." Debbie said nothing. "Why don't you call him up and y'all can talk about it?" She laughed anxiously as Debbie took a step towards her. Sookie took another step sideways. She knew she was safe for now, otherwise Eric would be here (Or Bill? Would he care anymore? Or did vampires only come for humans who were Theirs?). But safe for how long? She eyed Debbie's shotgun.

"You just don't get it, do ya, Sookie?" Debbie laughed wryly. "You're always messing things up for me," Debbie said, deliberately stalking Sookie's movements so that the women began to move in a tense circle. "Alcide kept saying it was nothing but I know better. He's loved you since the day you turned up." Sookie frantically shook her head and began to protest. "Oh, yes," Debbie went on, beginning to cry now. "And you encouraged him. You never wanted me to have him because of your precious vamps!"

Sookie put her hands in front of her, outstretched. "Now, Debbie, you know that's not tr—"

"Like hell it ain't!" Debbie yelled, waving the shotgun around like a handkerchief. "Even after I got off the vamp blood you still kept popping up everywhere, distracting him from me, the woman who truly loved him!" Debbie finally closed the space between them and now stood about five feet away from Sookie. She then spoke so softly that Sookie had to strain to hear her.

"I've loved him ever since I was a kid, didja know that? Well, I'll tell you one thing," she said determinedly, wiping her tears away so that her makeup and dirt-smeared features now seemed even more macabre. "If I can't have him, you sure as hell won't get him." With that, she raised the shotgun and pointed it at Sookie. Sookie wasn't completely sure if Debbie would actually shoot her or not, but she was sure that Debbie was upset, possibly under the influence of V, and handling a deadly weapon, so she didn't want to wait around to find out. Sookie ducked and tackled Debbie by the waist, knocking both women to the ground but not knocking the shotgun out of Debbie's hands.

"Bitch!" Debbie cried and hit Sookie in the head with the butt of the gun. "I'll kill you! I swear it!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's chapter 2! Sorry if the formatting and spacing is crazy. I'm trying to fix it the best I can but I'm still learning my way through the site's uploading features. I figured you guys would rather have it messy than not at all though. Am I right? Let me know what you think!**

"SOOKIE." Eric flew out of his chair, standing perfectly still, using each and every one of his senses to feel her presence. She was alive, but very afraid. Bill simultaneously did the same, interrupting his own speech to Nan, feeling Sookie's fear. "She is in danger," Eric said simply.

"Sookie?" Nan looked at both of them, confused. "You mean that silly human girl?" But before she could say anything more, Eric and Bill rushed out of the room at superhuman speed.

BANG.

They heard the unmistakable sound of a gunshot, then silence. Both men froze in front of Sookie's house (Eric's house? Eric and Sookie's house? It was hard to keep up with whose house it was lately), using their heightened sense of smell to determine who was injured. Or worse.

"The kitchen," said Eric, and both vampires zoomed in.

Sookie put the shotgun aside and stared at her bloody hands, her whole body shaking as she straddled Debbie's now lifeless body. There was blood, so much blood…on herself, on the cabinets, on the floor…Sookie had never seen so much blood in her kitchen before. Not since—

"No," Sookie sputtered, beginning to cry. She threw herself across Debbie's corpse, screaming and sobbing earnestly now. "Oh no, Gran…no. Gran. Gran!" The images of her grandmother's mutilated body were racing through her mind, each as fresh as if she had gone back in time to that horrible night.

She felt strong hands on her shoulders, pulling her upwards. "Sookie. Sookie, stop," Eric said softly. Although there was no danger afoot, his fangs were extended and his eyes brightly alert. It was taking all the energy he could muster not to devour a fresh kill. Her blood was still warm, he knew. A younger vampire than Eric would never be able to withstand being this close to a newly dead bloody without immediately sucking it dry (which was why he made Bill go keep watch). In fact, he would love nothing more than to do just that. But Sookie was already starting to fall apart. Watching him voraciously feed on a dead body (a dead body that she created) wouldn't help things. But if he could just get her out of the room perhaps…

"Sookie, come away." Sookie's chest heaved uncontrollably and she said something unintelligible through all the tears but she let Eric tenderly lift her off of Debbie's body. She slumped against his chest like a child and cried against him as though her heart was breaking. Which in a way, it was.

But they didn't have time for this. They would have to get rid of the body. Eric knew he could do away with it swiftly and in a way that Sookie would never have to know. But he would have to get rid of it soon, before it started to decompose in the humid Louisiana night.

"What the fuck is this?" Nan appeared in the back doorway. Both Eric and Sookie looked up, surprised. _Dammit, I should've heard her coming_, Eric thought irritably. If only he hadn't been concentrating so hard on not— well, doing what a vampire does best.

Nan seemed to be thinking along the same lines. Her fangs were out, her pupils were dilated, and she was creeping ever closer to Debbie's body.

"Nan," Eric warned.

"What?" She said, without taking her eyes off the body. "There's a human feast in front of me. So unless it's— oh wait, it's still a human. I don't care." And with that, she lunged forward.

"DON'T!" Sookie screamed and scurried between Nan and the corpse.

Then several things happened.

Eric sped toward Nan. Bill ran into the room. Nan aimed herself at Sookie's throat. But before anything else could happen a huge burst of light came from Sookie's hands and blasted Nan across the room. Everyone froze for a moment. Then Nan began to laugh.

"It…it all makes sense now," she gasped between chuckles. "_You're _the fairy everyone's been looking for? Oh, this is too good. A true necromancer _and_ a fairy all in this one hick town? I wondered what was between your legs, to make two great vampires into two simpering schoolboys. A fairy! Now I see what makes you so…" She looked as Sookie the way a cat looks at a canary within its reach. But before Nan could finish, Bill ripped off a table leg and staked her with it.

Sookie thought her kitchen couldn't be bloodier. Boy, was she wrong.

Eric was the first to speak. "Bill, you'll never hear this from me again but…good thinking."

"Sookie, are you all right?" Bill asked.

Sookie looked at Bill. She looked at Eric. She looked around at all the blood. So much blood. "I think someone should call my brother."

Deputy Jason Stackhouse couldn't understand how on earth his sister always ended up in so much trouble. Fuckin' vamps.

"So, you had to kill her in self-defense. Just sign this statement and we'll call it a day." He glanced at Eric and Bill. "Er…night, I guess. The room shows signs of a struggle, forced entry, and she was pretty hopped up on V. Her family probably won't be able to bring it to court."

The coroner was loading Debbie's covered body into a van now as Sookie stared on the front porch, eerily reminded of the night she found her grandmother dead. Eric turned her face away and buried it into his jacket. He stroked her hair with his bloody hands and she wrapped her arms around him.

"Are you very familiar with the signs of a vampire blood user?" he asked Jason levelly.

"Now, look—"

"We are most grateful to you for your discretion, Jason, " Bill interrupted smoothly. "Believe me, it won't be soon forgotten."

"Yeah, well. I'd sure like to forget this," said Jason bluntly, jerking his head back to the house toward at the scarlet walls of his grandmother's once-pristine kitchen.

"Of course," Bill replied, smiling. It gave Jason the creeps when vampires smiled. It never led to anything good. Jason went over to his sister and took her hands in his.

"You wanna crash at my place, Sook? I wouldn't wanna stay in a house where I was almost murdered."

"Jason," Sookie responded wearily. "When have I almost _not_ been murdered lately? I'm as safe here as I am anywhere else. Although I would like to get everything cleaned up."

"I'll do it," Eric volunteered. He glared the cleaning crew. "Shoo." The crew all shifted back into their van hurriedly, nearly knocking each other over trying to get back in. Eric sauntered inside and started to clean up the blood and gore at tip-top vamp speed. Eric usually thought menial labor was beneath him, but he'd make an exception in this case; he didn't want too many humans poking around in his house. That never ended well.

Bill and Jason talked legal ramifications for a while to make sure no vampires could be blamed for Debbie Pelt's death, even though it was obvious a vampire had been staked on-site and two others were present. Jason assured him that the case was strictly between Debbie and Sookie. He then kissed Sookie on the forehead and walked to his car, and just as Sookie was saying good night to Bill, Eric stepped back onto the porch. Sookie gave him a small smile and went inside. "I need a bath," she said simply.

The two vampires said nothing for a long moment, staring out into the night sky, the silence between them saying everything.

"Eric."

"Bill."

"She will discover what you're truly like and grow to hate you."

"I think you underestimate her."

"Does she underestimate you, is the question," Bill retorted.

"What Sookie does or does not do is no longer your concern." Eric raised an eyebrow. "Is it, Bill?" He turned towards the door and smiled lazily at Bill over his shoulder as he opened it. "Good night, my king."

"It wasn't self defense," Sookie said flatly, untying her hair from its bun and emerging from the bathroom. Eric waited, saying nothing. "We fought and I finally got the upper hand. I had the gun pointed at her, right at her. And she looked me in the eyes and begged me not to shoot." She lifted her eyes to Eric's. "Then I killed her. I could have let her go but I killed her." She stood very still, her expression disdainful.

Eric looked down at her and stroked her cheek. "You had to. If you had let her live you know she would have killed you later." _And then I would have killed her,_ he thought. As someone who was used to killing both in his human life and vampire one, Eric was no stranger to taking the lives of others, whether justified or not. In his opinion, Debbie Pelt's life was no great loss. Her precious lover Alcide had given her a second chance and look what happened. Plus, she was a werewolf. They all deserved to be shot like the dogs they were.

"I wanted to kill her, Eric. I hated her and I _wanted_ to kill her."

"You were very brave, Sookie. Not many humans could take on a werewolf."

Sookie shook her head. "I don't feel very brave. I feel like a brutish, cowardly killer. "

"Let me remind you," Eric said, drawing her closer. "That you are consort to a Viking. And we do not choose to mate with the weak. Or the foolish."

He kissed her then. Tenderly at first, but soon his lips came down on hers hungrily. He had not gotten to feed tonight, and he was very aroused. One of his needs would be met before the dawn. Both, if he could help it.

His hands were everywhere. Cupping her face, sliding down her shoulders, on her waist, her breasts, the small of her back…then to her stomach…and lower still as he slid his hands beneath the oversized Fangtasia t-shirt to squeeze her buttocks. He was pleased to discover she had not yet put on undergarments. Sookie moaned and tilted back her head, leaving her neck free for Eric to trail kisses across. The two haphazardly moved backwards as Eric pushed her against the wall and Sookie frantically tried to undo his belt. As soon as his pants fell to the floor Sookie lifted her leg up insistently and Eric happily obliged by picking her up by both legs as Sookie anchored them around his waist. He held her against the wall with one strong hand and with the other, slowly caressed her body, moving downward until he reached her most intimate of places. She gasped and involuntarily rocked her hips against his hand as his fingers began to move in tandem with her. "You are not an average human, Sookie," he said roughly, his fangs brushing her earlobe. She shivered and dug her fingernails into his back, leaving angry red marks that healed almost as soon as they were made. "Don't ever apologize for rising to the occasion."

He entered her then, and she let him lead her into bliss.

Jason was just sliding into the front seat of his squad car and shut the door when someone urgently knocked on the glass. He jumped. "Aaaah, god dammit! What are you doing right outside my window like that?" He opened the door and got out, trying not to look as shaken up as he felt.

"I apologize for startling you," said Bill, closing the door after him. "But I wanted to ask you something before you left."

"I told ya the case would be filed as strictly human, didn't I? No fangers involved." Jason had had enough of vampires for the night and turned away irritably. He reached for the door handle. Bill zoomed directly in front of him, his hand tightly gripping Jason's wrist.

"Actually, this has nothing to do with Debbie Pelt. I wondered if perhaps you might grant me a personal favor?"


	3. Chapter 3

_**(Disclaimer: The following chapter contains a quote by the character of "Ginger" that was directly taken from season 2 of True Blood. I do not own True Blood or any of its characters. All the rest of this chapter is, as always, my own work.)**_

Jason stared at Bill as if he had sprouted eight arms like an octopus. What on earth could Bill Compton possibly want from _him_?

"I would like your help in watching over Sookie."

"Sookie?" Jason asked, confused. "Whaddaya mean? Is she in some kinda supernatural trouble again? I'm sure you and Eric'd be able to help her more than I can."

Bill hesitated. "Yes, well. I am not entirely sure that Eric doesn't have, ah, ulterior motives in gaining Sookie's trust."

Jason looked dubious. Eric was far from a saint, but Jason would bet a million bucks that he'd never let anything bad happen to Sookie. Bill guessed Jason's thoughts and continued. "He has protected her in the past, yes. But I think the reason is because he may want her…_gifts_ all to himself."

"Hey now, don't you talk about my sister like that, Bill Compton," Jason glared. "You weren't complaining before when you were getting her _gifts_." Bill resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Jason's protectiveness over his sister's reputation was admirable, but the young man was clearly dumber than a werewolf.

"No, no, I didn't mean— not that," Bill said. "I mean her fae abilities."

Jason stared blankly. "Fae?"

"Yes, fae. Fairy. Fairy abilities." Bill searched for some sign of recognition on the deputy's face.

"Oh, you mean the microwave fingers thing she can do?" _Microwave fingers?_ Bill thought scornfully. _Jason Stackhouse, try reading a book someday._ Outwardly, he swallowed his frustration.

"Yes…that. I fear he may want to use her for his own ends."

"What?" Jason was stunned. He raked a hand through his hair exasperatedly and paced a bit, finally resting his head in his hands on top of his car. After a while he lifted his head, gazing off into the woods. "Sook's the only family I got left. I'd die before I let anything happen to her. You know what though? I never woulda believed it. Eric is one dangerous fucker, that's for sure, but he seems to really care about Sookie." A shadow of resentment flickered across Bill's face but was gone so quickly that Jason didn't even notice. "But I guess you know Eric better'n I do, so…" He finally looked at Bill. "What are you suggesting?"

The next afternoon, Sookie was just stepping out of her bathroom after taking a long, hot shower. Sam had heard what happened and called in the morning, saying she and Lafayette wouldn't have to come in to work today. Sookie had mumbled a word of thanks and promptly fell right back asleep until about an hour ago. She wasn't exactly sure what time that was, since she had spent the night down in Eric's "cubby" as she liked to call it. But she knew it had to be past noon, since the sun streaming through her window was heading westward. Eric, of course, was still asleep down below. Because he was so old, he might wake at dusk instead of after full nighttime, but that that was still a few hours away.

It had been awhile since Sookie felt so normal, so _human_. She couldn't remember the last time she hunted through her closet searching for the perfect ensemble or played her favorite Taylor Swift songs as she styled her long blonde hair this way and that. She finally decided on a simple kelly green sundress and sandals; she wasn't sure what vampire drama would come tonight, but for now it was too warm to wear anything tight. Sookie admired herself in the mirror approvingly and absently wondered if Eric would think she looked pretty. She realized that was pointless— Eric thought she was beautiful, as he had reminded her plenty last night. She felt her cheeks grow warm at the memory. _Stop it, Sookie._ She chided herself._ You're acting like a silly schoolgirl. _Her stomach grumbled loudly, interrupting her inner monologue.

Sookie chuckled softly to herself as she walked downstairs. What was it Ginger had said to her a while back? Oh, yeah: _"That's the thing about being around vamps, ain't it? You're always forgetting to eat." _

Over the next few hours Sookie accomplished a lot of the things one never has time for when in the midst of a supernatural war; she prepared and ate lunch (spaghetti and meatballs with salad), took a B12 vitamin (Eric had drank a_ lot _of her blood last night), sorted through her mail (mostly bills), and did some housework (the carpets certainly weren't going to vacuum themselves). Just as she was drying off the last of her lunch dishes, she heard Eric's voice in her ear.

"I will have to replace your table."

Sookie jumped. "Eric! Don't do that!"

"I won't say I'm sorry," he said. He began kissing her neck. "I like watching you get excited." Sookie could practically _feel _his seductive grin and turned around to face him, putting her hands on his chest as he tried to close the distance between them. She realized that this was a mistake. Eric had slept without a shirt and she was now eye level with his bare chest. His smooth, muscular bare chest…she swallowed and forced her eyes upward to his face.

"And I don't want that table replaced. It's been in our family for years; Gran's father built it himself."

"I shall have it repaired then," he replied smoothly, nonplussed. He then closed the gap between their bodies by pulling her to him and kissed her earnestly. "Have you eaten?" he asked, caressing her face.

"Yes," Sookie said breathlessly. "Wh— ?"

"Good. You will need your energy." His fangs emerged and he kissed her again, lowering his hands and beginning to slide the material of her dress upward. Sookie felt something vibrate near her hip. She froze.

"Please tell me that's your cell phone."

Eric reached into the pocket of his drawstring shorts then opened his hand.

"It's my cell phone," he smirked. He answered it, his eyes never leaving Sookie's. She sighed and leaned back against the sink. "Northman," Eric answered brusquely. He paused, listening. "I'll be right there," he said, and returned the phone to his pocket. He bent down and lightly ran his thumb across Sookie's lips. She held his gaze for a moment then reached up to loop her arms around his neck. "Not now, lover," Eric scolded gently, disentangling himself from her grasp and lightly taking her hand instead. "Come. We must tell Pam the good news."

Sookie and a now fully clothed Eric stood facing Pam in the Fangtasia office. It looked like she'd been occupied going over the bar's books and she barely batted a perfect mascara-coated eyelash when Eric showed up with Sookie in tow. She merely said it was good to have him back safe and that there were a few documents that had needed signing in his absence. But Sookie knew better than to be surprised; Eric and Pam had never exactly been what you'd call warm and fuzzy.

"Of course," Eric responded." And Pam, there is something you should know. Sookie is Mine now."

That got Pam's attention. She put down her pen. "You're serious?"

Sookie muttered, "Gosh, thanks, Pam." She hadn't forgotten that Pam had tried to kill her when Eric offered up his life to Marnie in exchange for Sookie's safety.

Eric completely ignored them both and continued, leaning over the desk to Pam. "I trust you will show her the proper respect." He let the statement hang in the air for a moment; it was not a request.

"Well," Pam said finally, standing up and walking around the desk to Sookie. "Just don't start thinking this means we'll be best gal pals and share secrets during mani/pedis." She stopped in front of Sookie and eyed her up and down, examining the JC Penney sundress with disdain. "Or go shopping together," She said acidly, cocking one eyebrow in an expert imitation of Eric. She pointedly smoothed down her black silk Prada skirt and meandered off, her Yves Saint Laurent red-soled heels clicking in her wake. "And don't expect me to call you Momma," she added over her shoulder, leaving Sookie and Eric alone.

"I think she's thrilled." Sookie smiled wanly.

"Insults are Pam's highest form of flattery," Eric replied. "You will find she is actually quite loyal." Sookie had a few choice insults of her own for Pam, but wisely decided to keep them to herself for now. "I must attend to some business," Eric said, waving his hand at the papers covering the desk. "But it should take no more than an hour. Go to the bar if you like," he suggested, nodding to the door that led out to the bar's main area. "No one will harm you." He said this so resolutely that Sookie wondered if he was almost daring someone to try. It was a terrifying thought.

"I think I'll— " Sookie's cell phone interrupted her. She fished it out of her purse and answered. "Jason_? _Is everything all right?"

"Sookie!" Jason cried frantically. "I need your help— it's, uh, something's happened. I…I just don't know what to do, and I figured you'd want to hear about this from me before it got around..."

"Huh? What? Slow down. Now, what's the matter?"

"It's Bill. He's just been arrested."

"_What?_"

**Thanks for reading, guys! Leave me a review and tell me what you think and I will update it sooner! It's so hard for me to tell if what I have sounds good or if it's just me being cocky haha *insert Eric eyebrow raise***


	4. Chapter 4

Eric and Sookie pulled up directly in front of the Bon Temps jail. Eric had broken at least fifteen rules of the road on the way there and didn't stop now, not caring that his black Spyder was double-parked; he had bribed his way out of trouble with the law before and he had no reservations about doing so again. He knew as soon as Sookie had explained Jason's phone call that something was amiss. For one thing, a vampire being arrested by human law enforcement was no simple matter; they required special silvered, light-tight holding cells and Eric knew for a fact the nearest facility to have such quarters was located all the way in New Orleans, about five hours away. So if Bill was "arrested" he had to be just playing along. But why? Eric wasn't sure exactly what Bill was getting at, but he did know that Bill would be expecting Sookie to come alone.

Vampires weren't fond of surprises.

"Jason, what's going on? Where's Bill?" Sookie asked hurriedly as she ran to her brother standing in the front office. Jason looked incredibly uncomfortable. It was a busy night; there were angry indistinct voices coming from the hallway where the cells were located, police officers were bustling in and out, and the phone was ringing incessantly.

"What's he doing here?" Jason looked at Eric nervously, not answering Sookie's question.

"_He_?" Eric growled. "_He_ is here because he is in command of this area since Bill Compton is currently indisposed and in _your_ jail," Eric practically spat at Jason, his fangs coming out.

"Eric!" Sookie cautioned. But Eric took a menacing step towards Jason. "_He_ has a right to be informed of all vampire-related events in northern Louisiana. Would you not agree that the incarceration of my king and next higher ranking official obviously explains _what…I…am_…_doing…here_?" Eric looked every inch the Viking warrior as he glared and loomed over Jason, who backed away slowly, nodding mutely. Everyone was silent and for a moment everything stopped. Even Rosie let the phone ring and ring without answering.

"Eric," Sookie repeated weakly. Eric was still emitting a low rumble and didn't even look down at her, but he stopped trying to corner Jason. Sookie exhaled a breath she didn't even know she was holding. Slowly, the police station's officers and staff resumed their activities.

It was taking all the energy Eric could muster to stop himself from ripping Jason's head off. He had never before had a human speak to him so disrespectfully, even when he was one. Never before would he allow it. Fortunately for Jason Stackhouse, Sookie's love was more important to Eric than his pride. Eric knew Sookie would never, _ever_ forgive him if he harmed her brother. Teaching him a lesson in the future, however, seemed to be a good alternative. With effort, Eric retracted his fangs and visibly calmed down. He smiled.

Jason, however, was still hunched over shaking, a light sheen of sweat glossing his forehead; he looked like he would melt into the wall if he could. Anything to get away from the angry vampire in front of him. Sookie slowly walked between her lover and her brother. "Shhh, you're okay," she crooned to Jason. "He's not gonna hurt you." She gently placed her arm on his and tried to lift him up, and as she did, an intense jumble of images, feelings, and thoughts coming from Jason flooded her mind.

_Fuck! This crazy fanger could've killed me! Oh my God, I can't believe I'm still standing. Lord, please, I don't wanna go just yet. I'm too pretty to die. I knew this was a bad idea! That's what I get for listening to Bill's bullshit. I shoulda just stayed out of it. No wonder Sookie's always in so much trouble. But Bill swore this plan would work. How was I supposed to know Eric Motherfucking Northman would come, too? He had said, "Eric will be occupied with the running of Fangtasia. Sookie will be so concerned for me that she will not stop to consult Eric. Just call her to the station— just put me in a cell and I'll devise some reason for being locked up— I will tell her I have been arrested for Marnie's murder. I'll tell her Eric framed me somehow. We need to make sure that she thinks he's betrayed her." I wasn't even sure about this whole thing. I remember I asked him, "Well, don't that seem kinda hypochondrial?" "Hypocritical," Bill had corrected me wearily. "Yeah, that," I'd said. "If we're pretending to make it seem like Eric's double-crossing her, well, ain't we really the ones doing the double-crossing?" And then he just stared at me all funny. To top it off, I don't even remember anything after that except this overwhelming kinda urge to do whatever Bill asked. Making plans with one vamp and almost ripped to pieces by another. This is just fucking fantastic…_

Sookie didn't need to hear any more. She shot up and angrily snapped at Eric, "He's been _glamored_." Then she looked around and shouted at the top of her lungs, "WILLIAM THOMAS COMPTON! I KNOW YOU'RE IN HERE SOMEWHERE!" She stomped her way to the prisoners' hallway.

"Hey now, Sookie, you can't go in there." Sheriff Andy Bellefleur emerged from the hallway and blocked Sookie from entering the doorway. "This is a restricted area!" Instantly Eric appeared and Andy found himself face down on the floor, restrained by the heavy arm of a thousands of years old vampire who was softly warning him, "I have spared the life of your colleague tonight, Sheriff Bellefleur. Luckily for him. Would you like to see how lucky you are tonight?"

Sookie ran through the door and down the corridor, faster and faster, knowing that she would know when she had reached Bill. However, she didn't have to rely on her intuition, because Bill was in the very last cell, all the way at the end of the hallway. She guessed the other prisoners didn't want to be too close to a vampire.

Or a liar.

She stopped, breathless and panting, in front of the bars of Bill's cell. "Bill. Compton. You give me…one good reason…why I shouldn't come in there and stake you _right_ now." She was gasping for air now; being furious and trying to talk was too much effort. Bill looked back at her miserably.

"How did you find out?"

"I saw inside Jason's mind," Sookie fumed.

"Sookie…You must understand. Eric is treacherous. He will betray you at a moment's notice."

"And _you_ wouldn't?" Sookie shrieked. "You went behind my back to get me to pity you and leave Eric. And you got my brother to help! You know Jason's not the sharpest tool in the shed…and that he'd do anything to help me."

"Eric is cruel, then," Bill said quickly, switching tactics. "Have you forgotten that he sold you out to Russell Edgington? That he kidnapped and tortured your friend Lafayette for weeks?"

Sookie's eyes softened at the mention of Lafayette, who had never been anything but good to her. But then they hardened again.

"I'm not stranger to the cruelty of vampires, but that's a funny thing coming from the man who was _ordered to love me_."

"Sookie, I—"

Sookie interrupted him. "Yes, Eric can be cruel. But he never hid that from me, never looked into my eyes and told me different. But you, Bill…you have lied to me for the last time. I never want to see you again, for as long as _you_ live."

Bill stared at her. "You…you mean it?"

Sookie stared right back and said levelly, "Yes. And I know perfectly well you can get out of that cell if you wanted to, so you may as well stop pretending," she added irritably.

"You will regret this," Bill said gravely, taking a key out of his pocket and opening his cell door.

"Maybe," Sookie replied. "But right now all I regret is the night I met you."

_**Sorry this chapter took me so long to post! I've been busy with Christmas shopping and whatnot, but I'll try to post new chapters more regularly since so many of you are leaving me reviews asking for more! I swear when you guys review it makes me write faster =)**_


	5. Chapter 5

Eric and Sookie lay quietly in her bed, her head resting on his shoulder. He stroked her hair silently, both of them mulling over the past few hours. "I should have guessed Bill would make an attempt to win you back," Eric said quietly. Sookie looked up at him.

"Doesn't matter what he does. You're the one I chose. You're the one I want." Eric said nothing, gazing into her eyes searching for answers to questions that Sookie did not know. He tilted her head back so that it returned to rest on him.

"Would you prefer someone like Bill, perhaps? Someone with less…temper? I nearly killed your brother and I would've had no second thoughts about it."

Sookie paused. "But you didn't. You may overreact, but you do it for the right reasons. You aren't devious to suit your own needs. What you do is in defense of the people you love," Sookie murmured.

"I never would have thought I would hear a human rationalizing the things I've done."

"Well, it's all in your past. Everyone can turn over a new leaf. Even vampires," she smiled ruefully and closed her eyes, ready for sleep.

"Sookie…" Eric paused.

"Hmmm?"

"Do not mistake me. I _am _a vampire and will behave as such. I did not harm your brother earlier, but I cannot— will not— make exceptions every time. Especially for Bill Compton. Even if he is my king." Eric's jaw clenched.

Sookie's eyes flicked open and she sat up to look at him properly. "What are you saying? You're not going to hurt Bill, are you?"

"I am saying…" Eric thought carefully. "I am saying that you brought life into my existence when you deigned to love me. You cared for me even when you hated me. You showed me kindness even when I had never done so to you. Or to others. You reminded me of what it was like to be human. To feel. If someone so…so selfless could open her heart to me, then perhaps, I could try to open my heart to her." He stroked her check with his thumb the traced her jaw line. Sookie waited. "But not to anyone else," he stated firmly. "Because of you, I will show mercy to your kin and those you care about. But you must understand that it is not in my nature to be kind.

"There will be times when I may need to exact justice or make an example of someone. I will admit I enjoy being feared, but I am not vicious merely for the pleasure of being so. My means might not always be…amenable to you, although you know that I will always be fair. You must decide if you can accept that. If you can accept me."

Sookie looked at Eric. His icy blue eyes bored into hers intently, awaiting her reply. She saw honesty, sincerity, and hope. He looked exactly as open as he had when he was the Eric under Marnie's spell and had no memories. Except he did have his memories. This Eric was telling her that he loved her, but could not change for her, and was asking her to stand by his side in spite of it. This Eric had come a long way, just in admitting that. Sookie had seen how much more human Eric had become, whether he wanted to admit it or not. She reached up and took his hand in both of hers. "I meant what I said. I know you're not a complete monster, just like you know I'm not a complete angel. You've seen me in my less-than-perfect moments and didn't turn away; you know I'm not 100% good and I know you're not, either. But revenge isn't the way; we should help each other get to our better sides. Meet each other halfway?"

Eric knew Sookie would want him to say yes. But she didn't seem to understand that it wasn't up to him anymore; it was not like a vampire to be forgiving, especially when betrayed. But Sookie was His and after all he had done to have her, he would do anything to see her content.

He brought her hands to his and kissed them. "I will try."

_But Bill Compton will pay first_.

...

Two weeks later, Sookie awoke to the stark, artificial light of Eric's underground den. It was dead quiet. Sookie loved the sounds of birds chirping in the morning but Eric preferred her to sleep with him since "No one and no _thing_ would attempt to attack you while you're with a vampire, even during the daytime." She supposed he was right, but she missed the morning birdsongs all the same. However, Eric's insistent erection pushing at her informed her that it was most definitely not morning. She rolled over to face him. "Well, hello, sleepyhead."

Eric, of course, was anything but sleepy looking since only very young vampires ever woke up bleary-eyed. "Hello," he grinned, pulling her by the waist to him. Their foreheads touched and Eric leaned in to kiss Sookie gently. She returned the kiss and giggled. "How can you still want to kiss me when I'm all gross and have morning breath?"

"You smell natural, organic." Eric explained. "It reminds me of living things." For a moment they were both quiet and Sookie wondered if Eric, for all his love of power and eternal perfection, ever missed being human. "But," he said, with a playful glint in his eyes. "If it is your breath that bothers you, I will simply have to kiss you everywhere else."

"Why, Mr. Northman, whatever can you mean by that?" Sookie asked in mock surprise.

"I'll show you," Eric responded. He entwined his fingers in her hair, anchoring her head. "This," he rasped, fangs coming out. Then he began slowly kissing her neck, his fangs softly brushing the sensitive skin. "And this," he continued. He lifted one muscular thigh and parted her legs with his knee so that his manhood was cradled against the wetness through her panties. Sookie ran her hands over his strong arms, his smooth back, and every part of his upper body as he moved against her, teasing.

"You're…taking too long," Sookie gasped. She rolled over, pulling Eric with her until she was on top of him. "Now, I'll show _you_," she said, raising an eyebrow. Eric mirrored her gesture. Then, at vampire speed, he tugged off her nightshirt, reached for her panties, and slid her legs out of them as he pulled his own pants down, all without making a sound. Two seconds later, he let his hands rest on her naked hips and laid back, gazing up at her mischievously.

"Show me," he commanded.

...

Eric was just pulling on his favorite black leather jacket when his cell phone rang.

"Eric."

"Pam. What is it? I told you I would come to Fangtasia as soon as Sookie goes to Merlotte's." He peeked up his den ladder to make sure he could still see that Sookie's bathroom door was shut. He could hear the shower water running.

"You have a message," she said urgently. Eric instantly became alert; Pam rarely sounded flustered. That was a bad sign.

"From whom?" he asked cautiously, yanking on a boot. Pam spoke quickly.

Eric froze. "Impossible…"

"Oh, I assure you, Mr. Northman, it's not," said an unmistakable voice behind him. Eric slowly turned around. "No…" he muttered, eyes wide.

Vampires weren't fond of surprises.

_**So, who do you think the mystery visitor is? Sorry it took me a while to update this- I was caught up Christmas shopping. I would love it if this story could get up to at least 100 followers! In fact, if this gets up to 100 followers by Sunday night I'll post the next chapter as a Christmas morning present for you guys =)**_


	6. Chapter 6

Eric could only stare as Russell Edgington leisurely paced around, examining the den aimlessly. "Quite a day room you have here. I see Sophie-Anne wasn't the only one who missed _brighter_ days," he chuckled wryly.

"I buried you," Eric said incredulously. "There is no way you could have gotten out." Vampires were fantastically strong of course, but Eric knew not even Godric's Maker could have burst through several yards of concrete, especially after being weakened from months of not feeding.

"No way I could have gotten out _alone_," Russell corrected, picking up a novel left on the small bedside table and scornfully tossing it back down again after flipping through it absently.

"Who helped you?" Eric demanded. He narrowed his eyes. Russell, of course, did not answer and instead began tapping the lighted panels of the den's false windows. "How do these work exactly? Is it fluorescent or— ?" Eric dropped all pretenses then, and went into fight mode; he leaped at Russell with his fangs out, pupils dilated, and at vampire speed.

"Answer me, you traitorous piece of shit!"

Russell Edgington did not try to fight back; he didn't even look the least bit frightened. Instead, a smile slowly crept across his face and he began to cackle.

"Oh, I'm sure you'd like to know but isn't it much more exciting if I just keep the mystery alive? Speaking of mysteries, exactly what are you doing in the house of Sookie Stackhouse?" Eric did not answer. Russell's glance moved to Sookie's discarded panties on the floor. "Ah…and from the looks of things, her house isn't the only part of her you've been inside. Well, well…could it be that our playboy Viking prince has turned _monogamous_? And with a _human_?" Russell made a big show of wincing and added, "But then, as I recall, she's not entirely human, is she?" He leaned into Eric. "Does she still taste as sweet as I remember?"

"What. Do. You. Want." Eric growled.

"First, I want you to get your hands off me. No reason we can't chat in a civilized manner, now is there? Besides, you know you could never overpower me. I am twice your age, boy." Eric weighed his options, fuming at Russell all the while, then slowly released him. Russell smoothed his hair and tucked his checkered shirt back into his pants.

"What do you want?" Eric repeated, fangs still extracted. Russell smiled in what once might have been sweetly, but could now only be called sinister. "Well, seeing as the missus is out of the shower, I figured I'd discuss my demands with the both of you." Sure enough, Eric heard the absence of running water and supposed Sookie was finished in the bathroom. He knew if he didn't appear soon, she would come down looking for him.

"I go up first," Eric stipulated. Russell made an "after you" gesture with his arms, bowing deeply in mock reverence. If ever there were a vampire Eric hated, it would have to be Russell Edgington. Everything Russell said and did was an insult to him._ Swine. I should have killed him when I had the chance. But how _did_ he escape?_ Eric thought as he climbed up the ladder.

Sookie was applying lipstick at her vanity mirror when she thought she heard Eric's light footsteps.

"Hey, you," she said, smiling at his reflection in the mirror. She was really getting better at this whole "hearing vampires' soft footfalls" thing. Sookie turned around when she noticed Eric's sober expression. "What's wr— ?" Russell popped his head up. "Remember me?"

"Eric," Sookie said slowly, watching Russell climb up. "What is Russell Edgington doing in my house?"

"Well, it's not really your house anymore is it, darlin'?" Russell answered before Eric had a chance to speak. "I suppose I owe your boy toy over here some thanks for that." He chortled. Eric hissed. Sookie stared.

"You're supposed to be dead," Sookie muttered in disbelief.

"Very observant, Miss Stackhouse." Russell resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "I suppose _you_ have _him_ to thank for that," he nodded towards Eric.

"Eric? What? You didn't kill him?"

"Death was too good for him," Eric said somberly. He remained still as a statue, watching Russell's every move.

"But still, didn't it cross your mind that one day he might come back and want to drain me _dry_?" she whispered frantically.

"I thought I had ensured his imprisonment…"

Russell interrupted them. "While this lovers' spat is no doubt endlessly entertaining to pettier minds, I have larger plans at hand, children." Eric bristled, but Sookie grabbed his jacket sleeve and tugged warningly.

"What— what do you want?" Sookie asked Russell.

"You, my little fairy princess," Russell said simply, walking closer to her. Eric growled; it was a low, menacing sound…

"Our relationship is far from over," Russell continued. "Not only is a fairy—

even a partial one— a rare find among supernaturals, but you and I have a score to settle."

"And if she refuses?" Eric inquired.

Russell leaned in to Sookie's ear and whispered gravely, "You took my love from me. Perhaps I should have yours?" He stepped away from Sookie slowly, his eyes cold and flat, letting his meaning settle in her mind. She gulped. Eric, who heard everything, brought a hand to Sookie's cheek. His blue eyes bored into hers urgently.

"Don't. This is not the time to be brave, lover."

"But what else can we do?" Sookie asked, a lump forming in her throat. She clutched his jacket. "You can't fight him; he'll kill you." Eric did not like having his weaknesses glaringly pointed out but he knew this was true whether it was pointed out or not. He could try to take his chances and stake Russell right now, but by the time he got to the nightstand table, Russell would have Sookie. He could try to restrain Russell, but a fight would ensue, and because Russell was much older he would probably be able to get away— or worse, harm or even kill Eric in the process— and then he would have Sookie. But if Sookie went with Russell it would buy Eric some time to come up with a way to save her. Russell would feed on her, yes, but he valued her powers and fae blood too greatly to truly harm her— much.

_He who fights and runs away…_

"Tik tok, people," Russell chimed in boredly. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way, and my patience is dwindling with every sappy sentence coming out of your mouths."

Sookie turned her head to kiss the palm of Eric's hand. "Tell Sam what's happened, would you?" She looked back at Russell and hugged Eric. "And for Pete's sake, figure something out and come for me soon," she sniffled into his chest. Eric silently held her close until she reluctantly pulled away and walked dejectedly over to Russell.

"This isn't over, Edgington," Eric stated resolutely.

"No, I should think not," Russell drawled. "But we'll just have to see how much is left of her by the time you arrive. Maybe when I'm done I'll put _her_ down the garbage disposal." Sookie paled. Eric's jaw clenched. Russell laughed. "Good evening, Mr. Northman." He yanked Sookie roughly by the arm.

"Hey! There's no need to be rude!" Sookie exclaimed on the way out.

Eric held his ground, making sure not to retract his fangs until he could no longer hear Russell or Sookie. He waited, unmoving, expecting a trap. But after some minutes passed and nothing happened, he pulled out his phone. He knew exactly who to call for a problem like Russell Edgington. He also knew exactly whom he could trust with the secret of Sookie's fairy blood. And he knew exactly who would know more than he probably should about all of this. He listened to the phone ring on the other end and spoke as soon as he heard it pick up.

"Bill."

"Ah…Eric. I wondered when you'd be calling."

_**I know it took me a long time to post this chapter! I've been so busy with other stuff it took me awhile, so I tried to make this one chock-full of interesting plot twists! One of my New Year's resolutions is to update this at least once a week. Would that be too much? Was this chapter interesting enough?**_


	7. Chapter 7

Sookie sat in the steamy bathwater with her bare knees drawn up to her chin. She listened to rain gently pitter-patter against the large French doors leading out to the bathroom's marble balcony. Gran always said all your problems could be solved with a hot bath. _Not this time, _Sookie unhappily sighed as she took in her beautiful surroundings. _I'm in a gilded cage,_ she thought ruefully. She had completely lost track of time and no longer knew how long she'd been held captive in Russell's sumptuous colonial mansion. She had her own wonderfully decorated room— fully furnished and filled with everything a woman could want: clothes, shoes, books, stereo, even a flat-screen TV and a DVD library. There was even a button above the nightstand labeled "Please press for maid" Sookie had pressed it a few times, desperate for someone to talk to, but each time the maid arrived and left swiftly; it was clear that she did not speak any English. Sookie never thought she'd ever have a foreign maid waiting on her like an Upper East Side housewife. It was all very lavish and far too glamorous for the likes of a simple waitress.

But she had no freedom. She was allowed to see no one, talk to no one; she didn't even know where she was. There were guards everywhere during the day (and during the night, well, there was no better prison than being a human trapped in a house full of vampires) and there was even a female guard who followed her everywhere, now standing silently outside the bathroom door. The first twenty-four hours were the hardest. Sookie had put up a fight, screaming and yelling, struggling to get out of the guards' grasp when she was first brought to the mansion. After a restless slumber in the clothes she had arrived in, she decided to play nice for a while, in hopes that perhaps one of the kinder human guards might give her some information. But after a day filled with stony faces and no answers, she resigned herself to awaiting her fate, whatever that might be.

She almost wondered if Russell had forgotten about her; Sookie hadn't seen him since he dumped her onto his lackeys the first night she came. Although after a couple of days, she found a small calico kitten on her bed with a giant bow round its neck. Sookie had rolled her eyes, but the kitten was her only companion thus far and proved to be a small comfort during her captivity. Sookie remembered her last cat, Tina, who had been cruelly beheaded and hung from a ceiling fan by René Lenier/Drew Marshall, vampire hater. Sookie shuddered.

There was a knock at the door.

"Just a minute!" Sookie cried, hopping out of the tub and throwing on a terrycloth bathrobe. The only time anyone ever knocked on the door was when the maids came, but they never knocked while she was in the bathroom.

She opened the door to reveal a tall, stern-looking man whose expensive suit and serious demeanor made him seem much older than he was; he couldn't be more than twenty-five years old, Sookie mused. And he was human, she was surprised to note. Given that Russell was well aware of Sookie's telepathic ability, she assumed this was why she was prevented from seeing anyone, and all the guards were too well-trained to let their thoughts wander.

"Mr. Edgington requests an audience with you in his study tonight. Approximately 7:30pm," the man said imperiously. There was a pause, and Sookie realized he was waiting for her response.

"Er…sure. Okay." Sookie responded awkwardly. Why did vampires always seem to require a taste for the dramatic?

The man gave her a curt nod and stated, "Someone will come to collect you when you are finished dressing."

"Yeah…okay," Sookie wasn't sure if she should thank him or spit at him. She didn't need a babysitter, but on the other hand, she definitely didn't know where _Mister_ Edgington's study was. The house was enormous.

The man nodded again and turned to leave. Sookie, curious, watched him leave and poked into his head.

_Hope this goes well. Still dunno what he wants with this white girl. She sure doesn't look special to me, but then again, maybe the vamps know something I don't. She better agree to help, 'cause I don't think Russell's gonna keep up the Mr. Nice Guy act for long. Wonder what she did to end up here in the first place? I'll be damned if I get on the wrong side of Russell Edgington. No way, not me. I still can't believe what he did to that last guy. Man, I've never heard a man scream like that…_

Sookie's eyes went wide and she began to tremble.

...

"What can I do for you?" Bill asked Eric, who strode into his office with his fangs out, practically itching for a fight.

"You know exactly what you can do for me. You released Russell Edgington after Sookie!" Eric yelled, standing within an inch of Bill.

"Russell Edgington? What?"

"You know what I'm talking about."

"I assure you that I do not," Bill replied calmly, shaking his head.

Eric hesitated. He wasn't sure whether or not he believed Bill. Unlike most vampires, whose motives were clear (usually sex, glamour, or power), Eric had no clue what Bill's goal was this time— or at any other time, for that matter. But for now, he had no choice.

"If you are lying…I will personally see to it that you are silvered and re-silvered each night for the rest of your life."

Bill smiled in a way that Eric thought was more than a little condescending. "Yes. Well. Regardless of how I feel about you and…that is…I would never release a danger like Russell onto the rest of us. He is far too dangerous. He cannot be controlled." A long moment passed, both vampires wondering what the other would do. Slowly, Eric retracted his fangs and backed away— but only slightly.

"So Edgington is back?" Bill asked.

"Yes," Eric said flatly.

"And he has Sookie?"

"Yes."

"Tell me what happened."

Eric related all that had occurred while Bill listened intently. "…And now she is with Russell. While I am not…_eager_ to rush into a trap, at the same time…" Eric trailed off, refusing to show Bill every card in his hand.

"We must save her," Bill agreed. "And Edgington needs to die the true death this time," he added pointedly. Eric chose to ignore this last remark, as he _and _Bill had both allowed Russell to remain buried instead of truly killing him. But Eric would settle the score with Bill some other time.

"We cannot go alone," Eric continued. "Russell will be expecting us to come; we'd be playing right into his hands."

"I agree," said Bill. "It seems we shall require some…assistance."

"I could send Pam."

"No. Russell will have secured his residence against other vampires since that would be his primary concern in any case. And, as much as you may not want to admit it, we are essentially useless during the day, and Sookie's retrieval might very well take longer than we anticipate. No, I think we may have to rely on other…non-vampire means."

"Not vampires?" Eric murmured curiously. "What do you suggest?"

...

Sookie followed her guide (a vampire, she noticed ruefully) down a labyrinth of hallways before they arrived at a great oak door that she supposed must be the entrance to Russell's study. To her surprise, Russell himself opened the door as soon as they were in front of it. Vampire hearing, Sookie guessed.

"Come in, come in," Russell said cheerfully. Sookie looked at the guide. He nodded. Sookie tentatively proceeded and swiftly spun around to face him. She didn't trust Russell Edgington with her back turned. This was not unnoticed by Russell, who laughed wryly. "Have a seat, my dear. If I wanted to attack you, don't you think I would've done so by now?" He breezed past her toward a large leather sofa. "Sit," he said, patting the spot beside him. Sookie tiptoed closer and sat on the very edge of the sofa at the farthest possible point away from him.

"What do you want with me?" she inquired, getting straight to the point. Sookie had had enough of games. Russell frowned.

"Now, is that any way to thank your gracious host? After all, you have spent three weeks here at my home being treated like royalty. Can't say I got the same treatment from you."

"Three weeks?" Sookie shouted, dismayed. She jumped up. "You can't just keep me here like this!" In an instant, Russell was in front of her, his hands like chains clutching her arms, his very large and very sharp fangs extended.

"You'll find that I most certainly can, Miss Stackhouse. You'll also find there are limits to my hospitality," he added. "Do you understand?"

Sookie nodded dumbly, terrified. But then she thought quickly.

"Last— " her voice cracked. "Last time we met you let me ask a question for a question."

Russell looked at her thoughtfully for a moment then retracted his fangs and released her. "Why, so I did," he mused, assuming his easygoing manner once more. He sat.

"You first, my dear."

...

"We need someone with a good head on his shoulders, but also someone whom Sookie trusts," Bill replied.

There was silence as Eric and Bill both mentally nominated someone who would be brave and loyal and foolish enough to face almost certain death for Sookie Stackhouse. They both spoke simultaneously.

"Alcide Herveaux," said Eric.

"Tara Thornton," said Bill.

_**I know I took forever to upload a new chapter, guys! I've just been really busy with work and stuff but I SWEAR after this I'm gonna try to post a new chapter every week (ugh, and I promise I'm still trying to get the formatting corrected). Let me know if you liked this chapter!**_


	8. Chapter 8

Sookie swallowed and again lowered herself to the couch. "Why haven't you killed me yet?" To her disappointment, her voice quavered.

Russell examined her carefully before answering. "It's just too soon!" he exclaimed, busting into laughter. "Why kill you now before the fun has started?" Sookie's heart sank. She had no doubt that she and Russell would hardly share the same definition of "fun." In a flash, Russell was inches away from her face.

"My turn," he said softly, all traces of amusement gone. "What are you to Eric Northman?"

"I— I am His," Sookie said shakily.

"Hmmm, is that so…?" Russell trailed off thoughtfully, settling back into the sofa. "Well, how interesting." His face broke into a smile. "Yes, how very interesting indeed."

Sookie decided to take advantage of the moment. "What's with the princess treatment?"

Russell reached out and caressed a lock of Sookie's hair. "Oh, but don't all women love to be pampered a little?"

Sookie yanked her hair out of his grasp and snorted. "You gave me a _kitten_."

Russell shrugged. Yes, well, Mr. Ramirez did suggest that the cat might have been overdoing it just a tad," he nodded towards the door and Sookie was surprised to see the human man who had delivered the message to her earlier.

"You're _helping_ him?" Sookie snapped. But Mr. Ramirez just stared blankly straight ahead and did not do anything that would indicate that he had even heard her. After probing into his mind, Sookie discovered he was (deliberately) thinking about nothing. It occurred to her that this guy was much smarter than he let on; he might be more than just Russell's errand boy.

"Really, Sookie Stackhouse, you are so predictable," Russell heaved a sigh dramatically. "Would you prefer to interrogate my entire staff or would you like the answer to your question? You are receiving _special_ treatment because, well, I like you."

"Bullshit," Sookie spat out.

"No, truly. In fact, I like you so much, I want you to stay." Russell held her gaze. Sookie's mind began to work furiously as she worked through the puzzle pieces.

"You…you want to keep me here," she sputtered. "Like a— a walking lunchbox!" she finished angrily.

"Actually, Miss Stackhouse, I would rather think of you as a beloved pet, but you obviously don't value yourself as much as I do. But yes, during the time I was…indisposed, the idea came to me that you are much more valuable to me alive than dead; naturally I mean to extend my invitation to you indefinitely. After all, if I kill you, there would be no more of your lovely fairy blood to enjoy." His eyes gleamed in a way that made Sookie want to vomit.

"So, you're trying to bribe me with a bunch of fancy stuff while you drain me almost dry every night? I don't think so!" Sookie cried, outraged.

Before she could blink Russell's fangs were out and his hands were twisting her head, exposing her neck to him. But it was her ear that he went for. He hissed. "I am trying my best to be a gentleman about all this, Miss Stackhouse, but as amusing as you are— my patience has limits and you are pushing mine. Now, for the umpteenth time, kindly…_Shut. Up_. Do you think you can do as you're told from now on?"

If there were ever a moment that Sookie wished she could summon her fairy powers, now was it. But no matter how much she willed her hands to burst with powerful light as they had many times before, this time, they remained unchanged.

And with her head trapped between an ancient vampire's palms, there wasn't a whole lot else she could do.

Sookie whimpered, as it was pretty much impossible to nod or speak with Russell's vice-like grip around her face. Russell seemed to accept this an answer and released her. Sookie rubbed her jaw; it would probably be bruised by morning, but she didn't want to let Russell know he'd gotten to her.

"My question," he said sweetly, retracting his fangs, "Is this: what Eric Northman to you?"

"I already told you I was His."

"That's what you are to him, but what is he to you?"

"He's…well, I…" Sookie had no idea what to answer. She and Eric hadn't exactly had the "what are we to each other" conversation. What did you call someone whose life you had saved, and who had saved your life in return, someone who knew everything about you, someone who loved you unconditionally, someone who was literally willing to die for you? The word "boyfriend" just seemed so incredibly inadequate.

"He is mine," Sookie whispered. She looked down at her hands. She knew Russell would be able to hear her.

"Well, well, well. Don't tell me our little fairy princess has fallen in _love_," he said slowly. Sookie's head jerked up. Russell was looking like a kid in a candy store. "Oh, but this is wonderful— even better than I'd hoped for." He clapped his hands together eagerly.

Sookie looked at him, puzzled and more than a little frightened. "What's wonderful?"

"Why, two birds with one stone, Miss Stackhouse. Two little birds that have royally fucked me over. And I already have one little bird here," Russell finished in a singsong voice. His expression turned stony then and Sookie didn't have to read vampire minds to know what he was thinking.

There was silence.

The hairs on the back of Sookie's neck began to stand up and she felt the overwhelming urge to run, to back into a corner, hide in a closet, anything to get away from the evil sitting in front of her. She swallowed and began to widen the gap between them. "And…if I don't choose to stay here?"

"I'd much rather you stayed of your own free will. It's so much easier on everyone, don't you think?" He grinned a fangy grin, sidling closer to her. "Since I've been so nice, I'd hate to have to show you my bad side, sweetheart."

"Your bad side…" Sookie repeated, nervously inching away.

"Yes. The side of me that comes out when you refuse what I offer." Before Sookie could blink, Russell grabbed her and sank his fangs into her neck.

Sookie's screams were loud enough to wake the dead.

_**What did you guys think of this chapter? It's the only one that doesn't go back and forth between different characters. Did you like it? Let me know in the reviews! Also, what day of the week should I post a new chapter?**_


	9. Chapter 9

Tara Thornton stared out of the window watching the sunny Mississippi countryside go by, and wondered what horrible things she'd ever done in her past life to deserve what she was getting in this one. Not that she believed in reincarnation— although on second thought, she'd seen enough crazy shit to be believe in just about anything. But she had sworn off getting involved in anything paranormal the night she left Bon Temps. And for the most part, she had stayed true to her promise; the one exception being to come back for Lafayette, of course— she'd do anything for her cousin. He was all she really had left anymore.

But then three weeks ago, she got a phone call. A phone call from Bill Compton, no less. She was so surprised she didn't even hang up.

Three weeks ago, she had been back in New Orleans resuming her life after being assured by an overly confident Lafayette that he would be fine without her help. Tara liked New Orleans. She liked living in a big city where no one knew who she was and instantly assumed the worst, where no one that her mother was a (former) alcoholic, and where nothing would ever remind her of her past.  
She had gotten a job working at a little antique bookshop. Tara had always preferred books to people. Books never judged you or called you names, and hey, they even taught you stuff— for free.  
Tara threw herself into work, determined never to get close to anyone ever again. It was one of the reasons she deliberately chose the old bookstore. It was small, cramped, tucked away in a tiny corner of the French Quarter, and only frequented by the rare scholar or tourist who already had a specific tome in mind. It was owned by an elderly couple that was retired but couldn't bear to sell their beloved shop. That pretty much left Tara to catalogue and organize the books all alone, with a radio her only company for most of the day. That was how she liked it.

But now, here she was, once again mired in some supernatural shit. And with a fucking werewolf— one whom she barely knew. Their one tie in common was Sookie, who seemed to be a danger magnet if you asked Tara. But Sookie was truly her only friend, and she wouldn't stand by and let her be some vamp's juice box. Not if she could help it. Plus, from what Bill told her, this Russell Edgington was a sick fuck that made Eric Northman look like a damn teddy bear. But why would Alcide come? She couldn't possibly still be hung up on Sookie that much, to risk dying for her. She turned and studied her driving companion, this Alcide Herveaux. He was a ruggedly handsome, very large man. He just looked like he was ready for action. But Alcide's dark, gentle eyes held much pain and sadness. Tara and Alcide had met only briefly before, barely saving their own necks (as well as Bill's and Sookie's) from Russell Edgington and his vampire/werewolf entourage, but the two hadn't spent much time getting to know each other.

Then again, eluding almost certain death was one hell of an icebreaker.

"See something interesting?" Alcide asked pointedly.

"Oh, sorry," Tara said with a start. She returned her gaze to the road ahead. "Didn't mean to stare at you. Just, uh, it's funny, huh? Seems like you can't go one day without having a normal life once you get into this vampire bullshit."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Alcide nodded. "But they're not the only ones with shit. Weres got our own drama…humans do too." He turned to her and raised an eyebrow.

Tara shook her head. "You're right. I didn't mean to say…" She laughed. "Me and my big fucking mouth always get me into trouble. Just ask Sookie—" She broke off, and there was silence as they both wondered if Sookie was even still alive.

Alcide wondered about Tara. What could she do to help Sookie? Tara was 100% human. Well, as far as he knew at least. Maybe she wasn't. He wouldn't be surprised. Not much surprised him these days. She might not have any super powers but from what he could tell about the little he knew of her from their past interactions, for all her hot-headedness she was a lot smarter than most people he'd known, both humans and supes. He didn't know why she even agreed to be a part of this, since she'd vowed never to get mixed up in anything again. It wasn't her problem. However, he thought, Russell Edgington back on the loose was technically everyone's problem.

That was why Alcide agreed to this. He had mixed feelings about Sookie ever since he heard about Debbie. Alcide knew it hurt Debbie immensely when he abjured her but he never imagined she'd ever try to blame or hurt Sookie. So he felt he owed Sookie one, since he blamed himself a little for what happened between the two women that night. When Eric Northman called Alcide and told him Russell had Sookie, Alcide felt it was both his chance to absolve himself of his guilt and stake that fanger for good. After this, he promised himself ruefully, he'd take a page from Tara's book and never get mixed up in vamp shit again.

"We got about 50 miles or so 'til we're there," Alcide said to Tara after spotting a road sign. "You still good on the plan? You sure you're up for this?"

"I am if you are." Tara smiled cheekily. "Let's do it."

**_It looks like Sunday is going to be when a new chapter gets posted! I work best with deadlines so every Sunday night there will be a new chapter for you guys. That's right. Every. Single. Sunday. Reading your reviews is what makes me want to write more!_**


	10. Chapter 10

"Eric, you cannot be serious," Bill scoffed.

"I am," said Eric, towering from his large "throne" that he occupied at the main floor of Fantasia. It was his turn to be a spectacle for the tourist fangbangers in the bar, but he'd be done at 1. He was as anxious as it was possible for a vampire to be, and he couldn't wait for Pam to arrive and relieve him of his duty. Eric checked his phone. 12:38.

"Eric. What makes you think you can just walk right up to Russell Edgington, exact vengeance, and live to tell the tale? You certainly did not do so last time."

"If you recall, last time _we_ were both gracious and foolish enough to _allow_ Russell to live." Eric raised an eyebrow. "My king."

Bill ignored the jibe and continued. "Yes, but you cannot possibly get there, find Sookie, and rescue her undetected all before dawn. The whole point of sending Alcide and Tara was that they have an advantage we do not— or have you forgotten that sunlight is the one and only way for us to meet the true death?"

"You forgot staking," said Eric calmly.

"Eric," Bill repeated through gritted teeth. "We all agreed upon a reasonable plan. It took weeks just to secure Russell's location. Now, Alcide and Tara will venture there during the day when security will be lax, or at least humans only. We know there will likely be no one else around or else very few others there to give them away. They will find a way to sneak Sookie out before sundown and bring her back to Bon Temps. Russell will likely come after her but he would have to get through us by then. And as you know, the Authority will fully support me once they find out he has caused so much trouble over a human; they will want his fangs on a platter anyway once they realize he is indeed alive."

Bill looked away gloomily. "And ours as well when they find out the part we had to play in it. We could lure him right to us and finally finish off Russell Edgington for good and have no one be the wiser. What exactly is your problem with this plan, again?" Bill inquired caustically.

Eric leaned down so that his face was very close to Bill's. "First of all, I don't send a werewolf and a human to solve my problems. Secondly, should Alcide and Tara run into trouble and still be within Russell's vicinity come nightfall, the two of them _and _Sookie are _fucked_. And thirdly…" Eric hesitated, and pulled away from Bill a few inches. "I felt something from Sookie a few hours ago. She is…" Eric thought carefully. "She is terrified," he finished simply. "I've taken care of everything at Fangtasia for the next few nights; I am prepared to go to ground in the woods of Mississippi if necessary. I would rather not leave Sookie there any longer than I have to."

For a moment, a brief moment, Eric saw something like sympathy flash across Bill's face. Or maybe it was pity. Eric didn't particularly care what Bill thought at the moment, but it might come in handy to know.

"But she is alive?" Bill asked cautiously. "I, ah, can no longer feel her presence." Bill shrugged, trying not to care.

"Good," said Eric flatly. "And I think so." He paused. "For the moment."

And for a few seconds, both vampires were silent, their minds focused on what that might mean for the pair of them if they were wrong.

Eric abruptly turned his head towards a door marked "Fangtasia Employees ONLY."

"Pam is here," he announced.

Bill was caught off guard. "I hear footfalls, but how do you know they are hers and not someone else's?"

One corner of Eric's mouth turned up in a cocky grin. "Bill, she is my child. Don't you know Jessica's footsteps?" Bill gave Eric a withering look. Eric's grin spread to his whole mouth now; annoying Bill was among his favorite activities. "Careful, or one night she'll wake up full-grown and you won't even know her."

Bill felt an overwhelmingly human urge to flip Eric the bird.

However, at that moment Pam appeared, fully dressed in her "vampire" outfit for the night: heavily teased hair that was at least three inches high, deep smoky eye shadow, and of course, blood red lipstick, all on top of a black lacy cat suit with elbow-length gloves and stiletto boots that made her look more like the sexy version of Morticia Addams rather than one of the undead.

"What are you boys up to this time?" Pam said by way of greeting.

"I don't know what Bill is doing, but I am going to Mississippi. I'm bringing Sookie back," Eric said firmly, helping Pam up onto the platform where she had a smaller chair placed next to his giant one. Pam tried her best to sound like she cared about what happened to Sookie. "Oh. Well…isn't that exciting?"

Bill stared.

Eric blinked. "I'm impressed, Pam. You almost sound as if you're trying to be n—"

"Do I at least get to be in charge while you're gone?" Pam interrupted before he could even utter the dreaded word. Her eyes narrowed as she watched Ginger accidentally knock over an entire stack of cocktail napkins behind the bar. "I find some of our staff to be extremely incompetent." She watched as Ginger began retrieving the napkins and blowing them off as her eyes darted around nervously to check if anyone had seen. Pam heaved an overly dramatic sigh, her eyes silently pleading with her Maker.

"Oh, please," muttered Bill.

Eric circled to face the bar. "Commencing now," Eric bellowed, "I name this vampire, Pamela Swinford de Beaufort, as the official mistress of Fangtasia in my absence. _Anyone_ who steps out of line must answer to her. And I promise you…" Eric paused for affect, while the crowd waited with baited breath. "She is not as nice as I am." As the club-goers tittered nervously behind him, Eric turned back to Pam with a hint of a smile on his lips. "If anyone can bitch-slap humans into submission, it's you."

"Excellent." Pam flipped her perfectly highlighted blonde hair over one shoulder and settled back in the chair confidently. Then her expression turned grave. "You come back alive, Eric." she said quietly.

"He will," Bill interjected before Eric could respond. "Because I'm going with him."

_**As promised, here's a new chapter for Sunday night (sorry for the time disparity for my readers who don't live in America)! I was so glad to get back to what was**** happening with Eric and of course, I couldn't resist the chance to include Pam- she's so fun to write! Let me know if you liked this chapter. Your reviews help me SO much!**_


	11. Chapter 11

Sookie rubbed her sore neck gingerly. The puncture wounds where Russell's fangs had pierced her neck were still painful to the touch. She winced and again dipped her blood-tinged washcloth back into the sinkful of hot water. As she did so, her calico kitten rubbed itself against her ankles, purring softly. Sookie looked down at it.

"Don't be sad, sweetie. It's not so bad— Lord knows I've had worse."

But she was lying; the bites throbbed like hell and her whole body felt weak. Russell had drunk from her until she passed out. This she knew because she woke up on the floor, deserted but for the guide who had brought her to the room in the first place. She wished for the umpteenth time that she could be back home with Eric. Vampire bites hurt a lot less during sex, when endorphins were running high and dulled the pain. It still hurt, but it was the _good_ kind of hurt. Sookie smiled ruefully to herself. Being bitten otherwise though, felt like being stabbed with a vaccine needle— a sharp, acute pain, only in two distinct spots. Russell hadn't bothered giving her his blood in return to heal her. Why would he? He wanted her alive, but her comfort had certainly not been part of the bargain.

Sookie checked her watch. It was just past 3am. She sank to the floor, still fully clothed, pressing the warm washcloth against her neck. She was cold, tired, and so hungry she could eat a whole Thanksgiving dinner. She sat back against the large bathtub and willed herself not to cry. Things could be worse right? She'd seen things when they were worse. So why did she feel so hopeless now? The tears began to fall now, in spite of Sookie's best efforts. The kitten cautiously climbed in her lap, curling up in her warmth. She pet the small thing absently with her other hand, letting its comforting presence calm her anxious mind. Before she knew it, they were both fast asleep on the cold, tiled bathroom floor.

"There it is," Alcide said to Tara. "Now, we just gotta find a back entrance. Not much point in walking up to Russell's front door."

They drove around the vast premises in silence, both watching, listening, and smelling (in Alcide's case) for trouble. Finally, they came to the back of the seemingly endless mansion. Unlike the front, the back of the grounds was much more approachable. Unlike Russell's previous estate, this one did not have large grass expanses surrounding it, but rather a small stretch of grass leading from the house and numerous trees everywhere else. _Good. Easier to stay hidden that way. _Alcide thought. There also was a fairly small-ish building that looked like a large shed or maybe a pool house, since there was a sparkling azure pool nearby. Alcide drove directly onto the grounds and slowly parked behind a grand oak tree. For a moment, neither or them moved or spoke. Then Alcide turned to Tara.

"Okay," he said, looking at Tara seriously. "Moment of truth, here. If you want out of this, Tara…well, I won't blame you."

"Alcide," Tara started, then found she couldn't look at him. Instead, she stared at the powder blue sky up ahead through the windshield. The clouds going past the sun looked like chubby white teddy bears. "Russell Edgington, besides kidnapping my best friend, let me be kept as some crazy vampire's _pet_. I know I'm only human, but if I can somehow pay him back for what he let happen to me…you can bet your ass I'll do it, no matter how small." She exhaled shakily and looked at Alcide, crossing her brown arms over her chest. "So. We get in, we split up, and we meet back in an hour, right? I can do this, Alcide."

"I know, I know. You're a big girl," Alcide smiled wanly. "But I don't want anyone else's blood on my hands. Nothing's gonna happen to you if I can help it, Tara." He tentatively reached for her wrist. Surprised, Tara let her arms uncross and let his hand move to cover hers. Alcide gently held her hand and gave it a little squeeze. To her greater surprise, Tara smiled at him and squeezed back.

"It's now or never," said Alcide. "Come on."

Tara went first, as they both agreed a human woman would arouse less suspicion in whatever guards there were within the house. She crept up to the house and saw an ornately decorated set of French doors. Not what she was looking for. She needed a simple back door, or a kitchen door— some kind of entrance that wouldn't be watched too closely. She slowly crept around the perimeter of the house while Alcide kept lookout from the smaller building. Finally, she found a plain wooden side door with a rusty handle. She grasped the handle tightly, fiercely hoping that it would be unlocked.

Luck was with her. The door opened to reveal a large laundry room, full of washers and dryers, cleaning supplies, and lots of women all dressed alike in pale blue shirtdresses with white aprons. They were all ironing, sewing, or bustling back and forth pushing and sorting through laundry baskets. Tara quickly noted that they all spoke a language other than English. She heard Spanish, French Creole from Haiti, even some of what sounded like Russian. _Ah-ha,_ Tara thought. _So this is how dead creeps keep up these lavish surroundings. They practically have a fuckin' army of maids! _Tara was just thinking of how she could get to the main part of house without being noticed when suddenly she got roughly pulled aside from the foot-traffic and found herself staring into the face of a middle-aged white woman with short red hair. Unlike the other women, she was dressed in a navy blue uniform underneath her crisp white apron.

"Oh, there you are! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

Tara stared blankly. She had never seen the woman before in her entire life. But there was a name tag on the woman's lapel reading "Mrs. C. Williams, Head Housekeeper." Seeing Tara's expression, the housekeeper's face fell. "Oh, but you don't speak a lick of English, do you? These vamps and all their secrets. You'd think I was working for the CIA! But I guess they have to hire foreigners. They don't like people that work here talking to outsiders, you know…" She trailed off conspiratorially. Before Tara could say a thing, the overzealous Mrs. Williams continued chattering on in a thick Mississippi accent.

"And, oh my Lord, they make such a mess like you just wouldn't believe! They give me the heebie-jeebies but they pay me real well, bless their little undead hearts. There's so much _blood_ all over everything every single day! We just had to place an order for fifteen more gallons of bleach…" She paused for breath and shook her head, then seemed to truly notice Tara for the first time. Tara was deciding whether or not she should play dumb or make a run for it, when the woman kept talking.

"Well, anyway, what are you doing down here? You need to get changed into your uniform dress first. If someone upstairs sees you in street clothes!" She looked around nervously. "Come on, then, darlin'" she said, making a "follow me" gesture. Then she spoke slowly and much too loudly, pointing at her clothes. "A _UNIFORM _DRESS. UNIFORM. I GET YOU NEW DRESS. UNDERSTAND?"

Tara inwardly sighed at the woman's assumption that she was a maid and that she couldn't speak English. She wasn't sure which bothered her more, but now wasn't the time to combat small-town racist attitudes; she had a job to do. So she nodded like she hadn't a brain in her head, smiled far too brightly, and did her best to fudge an accent.

"Dress. Uniform. Yes, ma'am."

"Good," Mrs. Williams nodded, satisfied. She walked Tara down a long hallway filled with lockers and the maids' personal belongings until they came to a store closet of sorts with a few extra light blue dresses hanging in it. Mrs. Williams selected one and then also grabbed a white apron identical to her own. "Here. A six should fit you. We've already stripped all the beds. All that's left is to get you started on the room for the lady upstairs."

_**Happy "Sucker Sunday" guys! Sorry for any formatting discrepancies- I tried to fix them but then just gave up, haha. I figured y'all would rather have the chapter a little choppy rather than none at all! How'd you like this chapter?**_


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12 **

Alcide watched Tara slip into the battered doorway. He waited for a few seconds and after hearing nothing amiss, padded off in the opposite direction. Something wasn't right, he knew. The grounds smelled of vampire and freshly mowed lawn and wolf and— Alcide stopped. He took off his clothes and transformed into his wolf form then crouched down low to the ground. As a wolf, his heightened sense of smell was even greater. He sniffed carefully, long and slow.

Impossible.

Sookie sat up groggily. She felt sore and stiff as she heaved herself up from the tile floor. Her kitten was watching her interestedly sitting on its hind legs, in the very still, rigid way that most cats do.

Sookie groaned, blinking hesitantly at the morning light streaming across the room. "How long have I been asleep?"

The kitten yawned.

"Oh, you're no help," Sookie exhaled exasperatedly. She must have gotten, what— four, maybe five hours of sleep? Whatever sleep she'd gotten, it wasn't nearly enough. But there was no use returning to sleep now; she was awake and all the painful memories (and actual pain) of the previous night had come flooding back. Sookie felt alone and overwhelmed and beaten to a pulp in more ways than one.

Gran used to say when there was nothing else you could do about your problems, you could always take a bath.

Sookie, with effort, managed to get to her feet. Big mistake. Once up, she was facing her mirrored self and it definitely looked as bad as she felt. There was an angry red map of indentation across her cheek where her face had rested against the bathroom tile when she slept, her hair was matted and sticking up in several places, there were large gray circles under her eyes, and the two fang wounds on her neck had gotten swollen and inflamed. To complete the disheveled image, her dress was blood-stained at the bodice and there was a long streak of dried saliva extending from the corner of her mouth. Sookie's stomach rumbled loudly.

"Bath first," she muttered to no one in particular. She ran the hot water and began stripping off her wrinkled clothes.

Ten minutes later, Sookie lay absolutely still, up to her chin in the steamy bath water, letting its heat soothe her achy muscles. The water was beginning to turn pink from the dried blood but it was still soothing and Sookie gladly let her worries go for the moment. She closed her eyes and let her mind wander, not thinking about the fact that she was injured, trapped, or that she had been separated from Eric for so long. Eric…

Sookie's eyes flicked open. Yes, where _was_ Eric? Surely he should have come for her by now. She knew he had numerous connections that could help him discover where she was (wherever that might be) and what Russell was planning. If he wanted to save her, she knew he most definitely could find a way. So why hadn't he?

_Maybe he doesn't want to_, said a small voice in her head. _Maybe he doesn't think you're worth the trouble. Maybe you're not worth anything to him at all._

Even though the water was still warm, Sookie suddenly felt chilled.

Was that it? Had Eric decided he'd had enough? Was she just his helpful telepath who was good in bed? Sookie remained motionless and thought over all the moments she and Eric had shared together. She recalled how he had let his guard down with her, how she had seen him at his most vulnerable moments, and the tenderness she knew he was capable of. Sookie was sure that she had now found a completely different side to the icy cold warrior.

But if he hadn't abandoned her, then where was he?

Alcide was still in his wolf form, circling the perimeter of the manor, hunting for the source of the unique scent when he heard footsteps. Two people— maybe three? He shifted back into a human and quickly ran back to the bush where he'd stashed his clothes and threw them on. He knew whoever the group of people were would smell him before they saw him; they were weres.

He shrugged into his leather jacket and lazily headed toward the sound; it wouldn't do to look as if he was in a hurry. His mind worked quickly to come up with an excuse.

"Hey, there! You! Where do you think you're goin'?" a voice shouted at Alcide. He had been right; he rounded a corner to see a gang of three male weres coming toward him. They were all filthy, as if they'd been camping and hadn't bathed for weeks; they smelled of sweat, dirt, and arrogance.

"I was sent for. I hear y'all got a human girl needs watching during the day."

"Yeah, we're the ones watching her," piped up another man. He had a black eye and a suspicious bulge near his hip. Alcide didn't want to think about that too much. The last thing he needed was a V-junkie with a gun and a temper. He was sure at least one of these guys was doing vamp blood, if not all three; he could smell it in the air. Alcide scoffed, trying to sound offended. "Well, it looks like you're doing a great job of that if they had to call in a _real_ wolf."

Two of the men looked bashful, but the first man, with a dirty t-shirt that had once been red, narrowed his eyes. "Hey now, what'd you say your name was?"

"I didn't," Alcide said calmly.

The men shifted uncomfortably and Alcide didn't have to be Sookie Stackhouse to know they were deciding whether or not to trust him. Weres were suspicious of packs outside their own, but they also wouldn't want to encounter the wrath of Russell if indeed they had been found lax in guarding the human prisoner and the grounds during daylight hours. Alcide moved to stride right through their little group on towards the house and cleared his throat meaningfully. The men slowly stood by to let him pass.

"Wait a sec," said the third man, who had been quiet up until that point. "You look kinda familiar..."

Alcide froze.

"I remember seeing you in Jackson…Ain't you Debbie Pelt's ex?"

"Yeah!" The first man was chiming in now. "That was Cooter's bitch, wasn't it?" He cackled. "She was hot as hellfire…"

"So guess that'd make you Alcide Herveaux!" said the one with the black eye.

For a moment, Alcide didn't know whether to confirm or deny it; he didn't know how much clout the Herveaux name carried these days, or whether these three losers even kept up with were politics. And with that thought in mind, he decided to make a run for it. Unfortunately, he got a swift, hard punch in the stomach first. The blow caught him off-guard and he swerved. He tried to right himself when Mr. Black-Eye whipped out a gun.

"Don't shoot!" Alcide screamed. He kept his eye on the gun.

"Yeah, man! He's worth more to us alive," the first guy hissed at his companion. The three hesitated. Alcide tried to move away but two of the men grabbed him and held him still. The one with the gun stepped up to him. "All right, we won't kill you then. But if you're a little…damaged I'm sure no one'll notice." The other two laughed and Alcide tensed, expecting another blow.

The man came toward him with the butt of the gun this time. And then Alcide knew only darkness.

_**I am so SO sorry for the lack of new chapters for the past couple of weeks! To be honest, it was a rough time for me and I was too sad to write. But now things have cleared up and I'm back on track! I tried to make this chapter extra long to make up for it. I love all of you guys and I hope you'll keep reading :-)**_


	13. Chapter 13

Alcide slowly opened his eyes and immediately shut them again as the room swam around. His head throbbed and he felt sticky drying blood on his cheek. He cursed, then opened his eyes in earnest, willing his senses to focus. He was in a dim, hot place. The air was thick and still. There was little light, and that only from a small slatted vent up above that he supposed led to outside, given the buttery rays that were sneaking through. He looked around. He was surrounded by shelves and piles of towels, canned food, bottled water, gardening supplies, and yard equipment. He guessed he had been dumped on the floor of a closet in the pool house or somewhere else outside, from the lack of air circulation. There was a bag of potato chips and a soda can carefully set beside him.

_"He's worth more to us alive…"_ the words echoed through his head. Worth more to whom? Russell? Someone else? Had Marcus' family put a bounty on his head to exact vengeance?

He tried to remain calm and take short breaths; it would do him no good if he passed out from lack of oxygen. He wondered how long he'd been unconscious. There was no way to tell from the darkness inside. Alcide kept a cell phone in his pocket, but someone had removed it. He remembered he'd been wearing a watch but to his dismay, his hands were bound in front of him with duct tape that covered the watch. He cursed again.

Alcide sat up and wondered if he'd ever find a good woman and just settle into the daily routine of surveying houses and building things. But he wasn't normal, so why should he have a normal life? That wasn't his choice to make. He shook his head wearily and tried to come up with a plan of escape. He was never very good at this sort of thing. He was more of a doer. He wished Tara were here; she had such a quick-fire mind— to match her mouth, he thought. In spite of the situation, he smiled. Then he suddenly paled. If his cover was blown, did anyone know about Tara?

...

Tara shifted the stack of sheets and towels in her arms and walked purposefully to the heavy door with the guard in front. Tara didn't scare easily but goddamn, that was a big gun. The guard looked straight ahead as if Tara weren't even there. She knew from the numerous books she'd read on military tactics that this meant these guards were very well-trained and thus, extremely efficient. They would be quick to action with no questions asked beforehand.

"I…" she squeaked. She swallowed, trying to steel herself, but then remembered that she was supposed to be nothing more than a silly maid in a strange land, terrified to be working in a vampire house, just like Mrs. Williams said. Letting the guard see her fear might prove beneficial. "I clean room." She pointed meekly to the door. She held out the linen to the guard. "Clean sheets for lady?" she suggested in a timid almost-whisper.

There was a very long pause. Worried, Tara debated whether she should slowly back away or start crying. She wasn't sure which a maid would do.

But then the guard gave Tara the merest of glances and with no change of facial expression, stepped aside so the doorknob was accessible to her. Tara shakily crossed the threshold and tried to look like she knew what she was doing. She didn't dare try to shut the door behind her.

Tara strode across to the bed and began stripping it, thinking fast. She didn't see Sookie anywhere but she could tell she'd been in the room lately. There was an open book on the nightstand, the radio was playing, and a lamp was on, even though it was a sunny morning outside. Tara moved slowly, buying time. She absently flung sheets over the bed as her mind labored over a way to find her friend. Then she remembered something. Tara knelt down, pretending to tuck in a corner of the silk duvet cover.

She summoned all her mental energy and attempted to project her thoughts.

...

Sookie was tired of missing Eric. She was tired of feeling lonely and scared. She had just about had her fill of life-or-death circumstances, and asked herself why on earth she put up with this.

_Because for once, you finally feel happy._

Sookie turned the thought over and over in her mind. Ever since Bill Compton had come into her life, she been in fear for her life or the life of someone she loved. On the other hand, with Bill, with vampires, the world was finally silent. No more hearing things no one should ever have to hear, no more feeling self-conscious or having to concentrate just to perform simple tasks. And she had finally known love— even with Bill, as untrustworthy as he was, she had loved him. And indirectly, she had met Alcide, as loyal a friend to her as Tara (even if he was a were). Then of course there was Eric, who had become her closest friend, protector, confidante, and lover. Sookie didn't know how she'd lived before him. Eric loved and accepted her for everything she was, and never made her feel like she was a burden, although she knew she must be; she was an obvious weak spot for him to watch out for, as proud as he was.

The hot water had done its trick and Sookie finally felt calm and clean. She resolved to get herself out of this mess and finish off Russell whenever she got the chance. But how? For what felt like the thousandth time, she sighed and hugged herself. From far away she thought she could hear the sound of a door opening. Or closing. Probably the sound of her freedom dying, she thought wanly. Great, now she was going crazy too.

She sure didn't have a great record of getting out of supernatural trouble, but Eric would know what to do. Eric would probably devise some clever scheme to get Russell to meet the sun and rid him from all their lives forever. Then he would take her in his arms to celebrate. Sookie wasn't sure if it was the Viking or vampire in him, but Eric was never more aroused than after an attack, especially a kill. Sookie squeezed herself tighter, wishing it were Eric holding her instead. Her eyes drifted closed as she remembered how it felt to be in his embrace, how it felt when he kissed her hair, her neck…she imagined how it would feel when he would once again run his hands all over her. Sookie's own hands glided down to caress her belly, and then her thighs, and then one hand, seemingly of its own accord, came to rest between her legs. As she imagined Eric's long, skillful fingers, her own began rhythmically moving over herself. Her fingers carefully stroked her sensitive point and she felt her slickness even through the water. Her breathing sped up and came out in short, ragged breaths. Sookie could feel pleasure uncoiling itself deep inside her and she started moaning softly. The pleasure was rising now, taking her higher and higher and then—

_Sookie? Oh God, Sook, I hope you can hear me. Sookie, it's Tara._

**_Hope you guys enjoyed chapter 13! I'm not sure whether or not I missed a week? Thanks to my new work schedule plus Game of Thrones coming back, it has thrown off my writing so I'm gonna make my new chapter day Wednesdays instead. Also, special thanks to everyone who left me kind words in the reviews- knowing you support me AND my writing has me feeling much better these days :-)_**


	14. Chapter 14

Sookie shot out of the bathwater so fast, Michael Phelps couldn't catch her. She stood perfectly still, ignoring the water that rolled off her body, listening with both her ears and her brain. She looked around and saw no one. But her calico cat was sitting ramrod straight, its ears fixed toward the door, not blinking, barely breathing. That wasn't a good sign. Didn't they always say on the nature channel that animals could hear sounds humans couldn't? But who (or what) was it? The voice had kind of sounded like—

_It's Tara, Sookie. If you can hear me, give me some type of sign. There are guards everywhere. I can't make any noise._

The voice "sounded" nearby. Sookie knew Tara was here, and she was close. But how close? Her telepathy didn't come with a compass. Where was Tara? Sookie reached for a terrycloth robe hanging nearby and pulled it on, draining the bathtub as she did so. Whatever was happening, she couldn't be prepared for it wet and naked. She looked around frantically for something she could use as a sign when her gaze eventually landed on a silver hairbrush atop the bathroom counter. Sookie skidded across the wet floor and grabbed the brush. She threw it at the tub and smiled with satisfaction as it made a loud _thunk_ as it hit the porcelain rim of the tub. If Tara was very close, she'd definitely hear it.

Tara looked up in the direction of the noise she heard; so did the guard. The guard minutely turned toward the sound, but before Tara could think what to do if he decided to attack, the door opened and there stood Sookie, dripping wet in a green terrycloth robe, wearing an expression of bold-faced surprise. Before she could open her mouth, Tara blurted out, "Uh…miss need something?"

Sookie raised her eyebrows but thankfully didn't give anything away. "Y-yes," she said slowly. "I— I'm sorry. I slipped in the tub," Sookie tried to laugh but it came out as a sputter. "C-could you, um…" she thought frantically for an excuse. Her eyes landed on the oak armoire in the front corner of the room. "Could you get me a yellow dress that's in there?" Tara nodded and inwardly sighed with relief as the guard relaxed and resumed his forward-facing position. She flung open the armoire door and grabbed the first yellow dress she saw, not caring if it was the right one.

Sookie could hear Tara's thoughts clearly projecting as she walked to the bathroom: _Don't say anything, Sookie. Don't say anything, Sookie. Don't say anything,_ _Sookie. _After what seemed like forever, Tara finally reached the threshold and Sookie hurriedly closed the door behind her.

"Sook, are you all right?" Tara whispered, hugging her best friend tightly.

"More or less. But, sweetie, _what_ are you doing here?" Sookie whispered back, returning the hug and shaking her head. "And why're you pretending you don't speak English?"

Tara pulled away from the embrace and rolled her eyes. "Normally, I'm pissed when racist motherfuckers can't open up their closed minds and accept the reality that a woman color can be something other than the person who scrubs your toilets and speaks broken English— but in this case, their ignorance just saved my life." Sookie gave Tara a quizzical look, but Tara began unbuttoning the dress still in her hands and threw it over her friend's wet hair as Sookie slipped off her bathrobe. "Now, get dressed," Tara hissed. "Me and Alcide are bustin' you outta here. And hopefully all three of us stay alive in the process."

"_Alcide's_ here?"

...

Alcide felt like every bone in his body had been shattered. He opened his eyes again to find himself now uncomfortably snuggled against a wooden crate. He groaned and realized he must've passed out again. He needed energy. He awkwardly opened the soda can at his feet with his bound hands. He downed the can quickly then started on the bag of potato chips. He sat for a while, letting the food settle. He looked up at the air vent and stumbled to his feet, alarmed; there was considerably less light snaking through. He still had no idea what time it was but if hours had gone by, that definitely wasn't a good thing. Alcide didn't want to be a were prisoner of a vampire king. A former vampire king— with a vengeance.

He wrestled again with the duct tape but couldn't pry it loose. _Guess those idiots weren't as good for nothing as they looked,_ he thought miserably. Alcide knew he couldn't extricate his wrists without a knife or pair of scissors or something really sharp. Like teeth. An idea dawned on him. He kicked off his boots then haphazardly tugged at his fly to open his jeans. He shrugged them and his boxers to the floor. Next, he started on the buttons of his shirt. He'd ruined more clothes while shifting into a wolf than he could count, and he'd found out the hard way that without any clothes to change back into, a naked man attracts a lot of attention. Alcide couldn't quite get his shirt or jacket off with his hands stuck, but there was nothing he could do about that.

And then he transformed into a large, charcoal-colored wolf.

He immediately began gnawing at the duct tape. Since his wolf-wrists were smaller than a man's, he just had to pry the sticky tape from his fur, but it still took a few minutes. Not for the first time, he wished wolves had opposable thumbs. But finally, he was able to get all the tape off of himself. He gently massaged his sore wrists for a moment but quickly transformed back into a man and began hustling into his clothes. He started fumbling with the doorknob to see if it locked with a key or a bolt. No point in trying to come up with a difficult escape attempt if all he had to do was pick the lock. But the light was growing dimmer by the minute and he couldn't really see what he was doing. Alcide decided to take advantage of the fleeting light and hunt for something that would help him see better. He walked to the shelves and knelt to get a better look at the bottom shelves. What he needed was a— _Yes, a toolbox!_ He flung it open and began rifling through the compartments and after a moment, his hands landed on a flashlight. He prayed that it had fresh batteries and clicked it on.

A beam of white light leaped at the wall. After being in low light for so long, Alcide shut his eyes for a moment to adjust to the brightness, but he was feeling on top of the world. He practically skipped as he went back to the doorknob, armed with a screwdriver, and began to work on undoing things. After some minutes, he could feel the gears in the lock start to move and sure enough, _click!_ The knob went loose in his hand as the screws holding it fast tumbled to the floor. Alcide tucked the flashlight into his back pocket and flung the door wide open.

"Well, well. If it isn't the boy who cried wolf."

Alcide cursed. Again.

_**Hey guys! I know this is late and I'm reeeeeeally sorry! I've been so preoccupied with personal stuff that I'm just not feeling as creative as usual- but I'm trying! **__**Also: I'd like to give thanks to EVERYONE who takes the time to leave reviews but a special note of thanks to Perfecta999, VAlady, and foxgodess07 for reviewing (almost!) every...single...chapter. And special thanks to momzombie and LostInSpace33 for your reviews but also your kind words :)**_

_**P.S. To Princess Brigant: I literally laughed out loud at your review comment for chapter 13!**_


	15. Chapter 15

Alcide looked down at Russell Edgington with apprehension. He knew he'd never stand half a chance in a fight against the ancient vampire. On the other hand, he knew Russell liked to play with his food. Alcide prayed with all his might that Russell would be in the mood for games instead of killing tonight.

"Edgington," Alcide said curtly, stepping through the doorway and out into the muggy night air.

"Mr. Herveaux, isn't it?" Russell responded lazily. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

Alcide hesitated for a moment, then decided to go with the truth. "I heard you kidnapped Sookie Stackhouse."

Russell waved his hand dismissively. "Now, now, 'kidnapped' is such an ugly word. And for the record, your precious Miss Stackhouse did come of her own volition." He paused. "Yet you, a werewolf, came here, to a vampire nest, alone— and unarmed— simply to rescue her?" Russell turned to his new boy toy (Alcide guessed, by the fact that all he was wearing was a Speedo) next to him, a tall, model-esque young man who was smirking. "And they say chivalry is dead." Russell laughed at his own joke. It was a harsh sound, like aluminum cans being dragged across concrete. He stopped abruptly. "How very foolhardy of you."

Alcide resisted the urge to shift nervously and stared Russell down as Russell in turn looked at him intently, trying to discern whether or not he was lying. Then his face broke into a smile and Alcide's breath caught in his throat. "Well, Mr. Herveaux, if you're so anxious to see her I suppose I can't help but oblige."

Before Alcide knew what was happening, Russell's hands were in his hair and he was yanked flat on his back. Then he was being pulled over the ground, making him cry out in pain as the friction created angry red welts across his back and shoulders. Alcide kicked and tried to pry Russell's fingers off as he dug in his heels, trying to do anything that would stop him from moving. He could feel his shirt ripping in places and screamed again as his bare skin roughly scraped the earth. Russell, however, appeared completely oblivious to Alcide's pain and cackled. As he dragged his werewolf prisoner toward the house, he spoke to his companion: "Todd, go ahead and tell them to check on Sookie Stackhouse. I'm not finished taking this dog for a walk yet, but I have a feeling something's afoot."

...

"…And then Bill called and asked me to come out here," Tara finished. For a moment she and Sookie were both quiet. They were still in Sookie's ornate bathroom, and in order to get the whole story out, it had taken three hours of pretend primping. With the help of a sumptuous breakfast brought upstairs by another maid who regarded Tara jealously, Tara had managed to help Sookie apply makeup, blow-dry and curl her hair, and change outfits and shoes four different times. Luckily, the guard seemed to chalk this up to normal female behavior and had paid them no undue attention. "Wait- what about Eric?" Sookie asked. "Where was he?"

"I dunno. I think he was the one who called Alcide."

Sookie exhaled heavily. "So he's all right then?"

Tara raised her eyebrows. "To tell you the truth, Sook, I don't know really know and I sure as hell don't fuckin' care. But the better question is, why do you?"

"I…" Sookie looked down at her hands. "Tara, Eric is— I mean, I'm…we're…"

"Oh, no fuckin' way…" Tara cried in disbelief. "Sookie, you gotta be kidding me— I knew he was in your house and everything, but are you actually _falling _for that sick bastard?"

"Well, I sort of already fell," Sookie mumbled.

"You got a death wish or something, girl?" Tara hissed angrily. "Why can't you for once in your life get a boyfriend who has normal baggage? Like a lack of commitment, or a momma's boy, or… I don't know, anything instead of, say— mortal danger?"

"Russell was after me before I got involved with Eric," Sookie replied weakly.

Tara threw her a withering look.

"Well, anyway, just because you got a death wish don't mean the rest of us wanna see you end up dead," Tara said caustically, folding her arms.

"Tara— " Sookie started.

"So here's how we can get out of this place," Tara interrupted. "Alcide parked the car in back of the estate, so if we just…" Sookie listened as her friend outlined an escape plan. Tara would go back down to the service basement as if nothing were amiss and Sookie would go to the pool; Tara would slip out of the house undetected then create a diversion to keep the guard busy while Sookie ran to the truck.

"What kind of diversion?" Sookie asked.

"Don't you worry about that; I'll figure something out. I've gotten this far without you, haven't I?"

Sookie felt horrible that Tara was sore but couldn't really blame her. Lately it seemed like being a Stackhouse was a magnet for trouble. "Well, let's do this," she said squarely.

"Right," Tara nodded. She gathered up some wet towels and headed to the door. "Remember to wait about fifteen minutes or so before you leave. And— what, what are you doing?" Tara watched quizzically as Sookie picked up the snoozing kitten and tucked it into a brown messenger bag.

"I'm taking this little guy with me. Who knows what Russell would do to him?"

"Sook…"

"Tara."

The two women had a stare-down for a few seconds as each wondered how to convince the other. Sookie was trying very hard to stop reading Tara's thoughts; she already knew her friend thought she was nuts for worrying about a cat when two human lives were on the line. Three, if you counted Alcide (which Tara didn't).

"Fine," said Tara exasperatedly.

_**I know, I know- this is LONG overdue. I'll try to write more frequently since True Blood will be starting up again soon. Even though this chapter is short let me know what you guys think!**_


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